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Month: April 2016

The Honda Civic is a popular, reliable, and iconic car, though not one that most people would commonly associate with the term “sporty.” That’s what Honda is hoping to change by introducing fashionable new Civic driving shoes. According to the brand, the shoes were the brainchild of online publication Thrillist, who approached both Honda and fashion retailer JacksThreads.com in order to make it happen.

Thrillist is a repeat partner with the brand, having collaborated with Honda in the past for various branded content projects. The partnership arose out of the two brands brainstorming on how better to connect with their buyer bases. When Honda questioned personal preferences of Civic drivers, one common thread appeared: many of them had an interest in fashion and style, according to Honda’s manager of media strategy Phil Hruska.

JackThreads sneaker designer Michael Vincent worked together with Civic exterior designer Jarad Hall in order to capture the overall feel of the car while designing the shoes, named the HT3s. The name ‘HT3’ reportedly refers to the three core design cues that went into designing the Civic: high-touch, high-tension, and high-tech.

The shoes, which feature a sleek design with a folding cover that hides the laces, went on sale March 29th, making their debut in Los Angeles. On the JacksThreads site, the HT3 Civic driving shoes retail for $100 and the product description highlights the shoes’ connection to the sedan, complete with a link to a Honda-sponsored backstory regarding the creation of the HT3s.

Word on the street says that we’re in for a next-generation Honda Amaze, and it may be on its way by 2018. The compact sedan is a big hit in its market in India. Rumors regarding a new generation come on the heels of the Indian government tightening restrictions on vehicle safety, with officials at Honda going into the preparations for the new Amaze with a focus on safety in order to comply with the upcoming restrictions.

The new Amaze will reportedly undergo a number of cosmetic changes in addition to the installation of cutting-edge safety technology. These changes include an updated, entirely redesigned exterior with a more modern and stylish appearance, plus an interior made from improved materials offering more space, a new dual-themed dashboard, and automatic climate control.

The safety restrictions themselves are very heavily geared toward protecting the driver and passengers in the event of a collision, particularly a frontal collision. Honda leaped at the opportunity, announcing that all vehicles in its lineup will have standard dual front airbags starting April 2017. Additionally, all vehicles in its lineup sold in India run on the Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure, which maintains rigidity and structural integrity during a crash.

The next-generation Honda Amaze will be engineering and constructed in Japan, at Honda’s Greater Noida and Tapukara plants. Production is slated to begin June 2018, with vehicle launch likely happening sometime that year. While the Amaze likely won’t be coming to US shores, the innovation of new safety technology and platforms in order to keep up with tightening government restrictions bodes well for Honda’s global market, as its worldwide lineup eventually adopts the newest tech.